''Eosyodon'' is a

dubious Doubt is a mental state in which the mind remains suspended between two or more contradictory propositions, unable to be certain of any of them. Doubt on an emotional level is indecision between belief and disbelief. It may involve uncertainty ...

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...

of extinct non- mammalian

synapsid Synapsids + (, 'arch') > () "having a fused arch"; synonymous with ''theropsids'' (Greek, "beast-face") are one of the two major groups of animals that evolved from basal amniotes, the other being the sauropsids, the group that includes rep ...

s from the

Permian The Permian ( ) is a geologic period and stratigraphic system which spans 47 million years from the end of the Carboniferous Period million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Triassic Period 251.9 Mya. It is the last period of the Pale ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

. Its

type Type may refer to: Science and technology Computing * Typing, producing text via a keyboard, typewriter, etc. * Data type, collection of values used for computations. * File type * TYPE (DOS command), a command to display contents of a file. * Ty ...

and only species is ''Eosyodon hudsoni''. Though it was originally interpreted as an early therapsid, it is probably a member of

Sphenacodontidae Sphenacodontidae (Greek: "wedge point tooth family") is an extinct family of small to large, advanced, carnivorous, Late Pennsylvanian to middle Permian pelycosaurs. The most recent one, ''Dimetrodon angelensis'', is from the late Kungurian ...

, the family of synapsids that includes ''

Dimetrodon ''Dimetrodon'' ( or ,) meaning "two measures of teeth,” is an extinct genus of non- mammalian synapsid that lived during the Cisuralian (Early Permian), around 295–272 million years ago (Mya). It is a member of the family Sphenacodo ...

''. ''Eosyodon hudsoni'' was named by

Everett C. Olson Everett Claire Olson (November 6, 1910 – November 27, 1993) was an American zoologist, paleontologist, and geologist noted for his seminal research of origin and evolution of vertebrate animals. Through his research studying terrestrial verte ...

in 1962 on the basis of fragmentary material from the

San Angelo Formation The San Angelo Formation is a geologic formation in Texas. It preserves fossils dating back to the Permian period. It is one of the geologically youngest formations to preserve fossils of pelycosaurs. Stratigraphy and age The San Angelo Formati ...

. The species name honors J. Hudson, a ranch foreman who aided Olson's work. A femur, currently cataloged as FMNH UR 575, was designated the holotype, and skull fragments, partial ribs, and a few other bones were also assigned to the species. Olson interpreted ''Eosyodon'' as a therapsid closely related to ''

Syodon ''Syodon'' is an extinct genus of dinocephalian therapsids that lived approximately 267-260 million years ago during the middle Permian period of the Paleozoic era. These therapsids, located in Russia were initially believed to be true mammals ...

'', and assigned both genera to the family Brithopodidae of the infraorder Eotheriodontia. Eotheriodonta was a new taxon defined by Olson in the same paper, to encompass several taxa he regarded as a group of therapsids intermediate between

pelycosaurs Pelycosaur ( ) is an older term for basal or primitive Late Paleozoic synapsids, excluding the therapsids and their descendants. Previously, the term ''mammal-like reptile'' had been used, and pelycosaur was considered an order, but this is now ...

and later therapsids. In 1995, C. A. Sidor and J. A. Hopson presented a reevaluation of Olson's eotheriodonts at the annual conference of the

Society of Vertebrate Paleontology The Society of Vertebrate Paleontology (SVP) is a professional organization that was founded in the United States in 1940 to advance the science of vertebrate paleontology around the world. Mission and Activities SVP has about 2,300 members inte ...

, and concluded that they were based on caseid and sphenacodontid pelycosaurs. In 2011, Christian Kammerer agreed with their evaluation and concluded that ''Eosyodon'' was a sphenacodontid. He regarded ''Eosyodon'' as a ''nomen dubium''. Olson regarded the San Angelo fauna, including ''Eosyodon'', as being from the early

Guadalupian The Guadalupian is the second and middle series/ epoch of the Permian. The Guadalupian was preceded by the Cisuralian and followed by the Lopingian. It is named after the Guadalupe Mountains of New Mexico and Texas, and dates between 272.95 ...

, chronologically equivalent to the Kazanian therapsid fauna of

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eigh ...

. However, the San Angelo Formation is now regarded as belonging to the

Kungurian In the geologic timescale, the Kungurian is an age or stage of the Permian. It is the latest or upper of four subdivisions of the Cisuralian Epoch or Series. The Kungurian lasted between and million years ago (Ma). It was preceded by the Art ...

stage of the Permian. As such, ''Eosyodon'' is somewhat older than the earliest definitive therapsids.

References

Bibliography

* * * * * {{Taxonbar, from=Q3281098 Sphenacodontidae Prehistoric synapsid genera Permian synapsids of North America Fossil taxa described in 1962 Taxa named by Everett C. Olson

See also

References

Bibliography